Cycling, whether done outdoors or in a gym, can help you burn fat and shed excess pounds. However, passively pedaling may not get you the results you are looking for as quickly as you want. But by timing your meals around your workouts and engaging in the right type of training, you can use more calories and lose weight more effectively.

Cycling Without Eating

Cycling on an empty stomach is a strategy you can use to burn extra calories during your workout. In fact, you burn more fat while you exercise when you do moderate cardio on an empty stomach than you do when fueled up for your ride, according to certified personal trainer Kevin Deeth. While you shouldn't do a long and vigorous workout on an empty stomach, doing a short ride before breakfast can help you shed some weight. If you don't exercise in the morning, give yourself at least a couple of hours between your last meal and your workout to achieve the same effect.

Intervals

You can add intervals to any cycling workout to help burn extra fat and calories. However, if you are exercising on an empty stomach, do micro intervals to increase weight loss without overexerting yourself. Begin with a short warmup period at a slower pace and then gradually increase to a moderate pace. Increase your normal pace to a sprint for 20- to 30-second intervals throughout your workout before returning to your previous pace. Finish with a slow, short cool down.

Uphill

Cycling at an incline can add resistance to your workout and help you burn more calories. If you are riding outdoors, choose a terrain that has plenty of hills. If you are using a stationary bike, adjust the incline or resistance settings to simulate riding uphill. Make the incline challenging so that you can feel the burn and get the most fat-melting effects, but keep your ride short since you are cycling without first fueling up.

High Intensity Training

Intensity is the key to burning fat efficiently when doing any exercise. Maximum weight loss occurs when you exercise at around 75 percent of your maximum heart rate. This is because your body burns more calories both during and after your workout if you exercise at this intensity, according to Marc Perry, CSCS, CPT. This benefit is enhanced when you are exercising on an empty stomach, even for a short amount of time. To calculate your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220. Multiply this number by 0.75 to find out what your heart rate should be at 75 percent of your maximum heart rate. Use a heart rate monitor to make sure you are exercising in this zone. If you do not have a monitor, count your pulse for 10 seconds and multiply that number by 6.

About the Author

Based in the Los Angeles area, Brandi Junious specializes in health-related articles. Her writing reflects her expertise in fitness and education. Junious is the author of children's book "A World Without Trees" and her work has appeared on Modern Mom, The Nest Woman, Chron Healthy Living and at Loseweightandlivehealthy.blogspot.com. Junious holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Southern California and a master's degree in Education.

Photo Credits

Have Feedback?

Thank you for providing feedback to our Editorial staff on this article. Please fill in the following information so we can alert the Live Healthy editorial team about a factual or typographical error in this story. All Fields are required.